Qatar achieves World Cup Goal

Qatar achieves World Cup goal

The tiny emirate will be the first Middle Eastern country to host the tournament, which attracts millions of fans, billions of dollars and – if the event is staged without any serious hitches – enhances the global image of its host. But to be successful the emirate will have to contend with a host of challenges.

The Qataris are confident that they can pull it off. “I can personally promise that we will not let you down,” Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad Al-Thani, the chairman of Qatar’s bid team, told a press conference last week after International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) awarded the World Cup to Qatar.




Skyline at Doha, Qatar

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Held once every four years, the tournament is a pressure-cooker for the players, but how will they perform in the frying Qatari sun? Will games be won by the team whose players finish the game without all fainting?

Qatari temperatures are significantly higher than anything most players have ever experienced outside of a sauna. Summer temperatures reach a scorching 50-degrees-centigrade (120 degrees Fahrenheit).

Qatar’s answer is air conditioning, which is a more technically complicated solution than it appears because FIFA regulations require World Cup games be played under an open-roof stadium. Officials are confident they can build an arena exposed to the desert heat above and briskly cool on the playing field. Making the best of the country’s relentless sunlight, solar-powered air conditioners will provide a three-meter (10-foot) high layer of cool air at player level.

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